Illumination assemblies can provide light for a variety of applications, including general lighting and electronic applications. For example, a backlighting assembly can be used to provide light for a display, for example a liquid crystal display (LCD). Currently such backlighting assemblies mainly employ cold cathode fluorescent tubes (CCFLs) as light sources. Although fluorescent tubes can provide efficient distributed lighting for illumination assemblies, serious disadvantages include complicated inverter electronics, slow switching speeds, and the presence of hazardous materials within the fluorescent tubes.